Various surveillance and monitoring systems utilizing a plurality of sensors, for example, cameras, audio sensors/microphones and motion detectors have become more common during the last decade. Such a system is typically operated through a control node, for example a server or a central computer device, to which the plurality of sensors are connected via a network providing a transmission path for providing the sensory data to the control point. A wireless transmission path can be provided, for example, via a Bluetooth, IR, WIFI, WLAN or cellular connection. In a wireless surveillance network, the network configuration may thus be modified by changing the number and the location of the sensors within the network.
However, in every-day life there are situations wherein a surveillance system should be initiated quite quickly, on ad-hoc basis. For example, a group of people travelling and/or residing in an unknown area, e.g. in rural areas, may want to detect certain movements and sounds in the surroundings. Naturally, such situations happen unexpectedly and very occasionally, and thus it is unreasonable to expect people to carry along devices of a dedicated surveillance system. Besides, in most such ad-hoc situations it may be practically and/or technically impossible to establish a network of surveillance sensors; consider, for example, a group of hunters who want to detect voices of certain animals.
Thus, there is a need for a surveillance network, which can be easily established on ad-hoc basis.